orthovisc injection

Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman all but confirmed Wednesday that the team would be in contact with the Tigers to gauge their asking price for reigning AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.

“There just aren’t that many star-level players in the game,” Friedman said Wednesday afternoon when asked how aggressive the Dodgers would be in pursuing big-name players. “Any time one is available, we’re always going to participate in those conversations. We’ve shown to be very aggressive in the past. … We’ve traded a lot of really talented young players.

“But we’re able to be in those conversations because of the incredible work by our scouts and our front office and our player development group that has our farm system in such a strong spot to be able to talk to any team basically about any player.”

All that was expected. Checking in is simply due diligence.

Friedman avoided showing his hand when asked the odds of the Dodgers acquiring a player like that at the deadline.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I’m not in the handicapping business.”

Part of the calculation, with the Tigers on a skid that could push them to sell at the deadline, will be the health of the Dodgers’ pitching staff, which is steadily improving. So, instead of trying to fill specific holes, the Dodgers have the luxury of reading the market and being “a little bit more selective and opportunistic.”

Before the Dodgers’ game against the Mariners on Wednesday, they activated closer Edwin Díaz and designated left-hander Charlie Barnes for assignment. Right-handed starter Tyler Glasnow (back spasms) threw two innings of live batting practice, and right-handed reliever Blake Treinen (right elbow inflammation) threw one simulated inning.

Over in Class-A Ontario, left-hander Blake Snell (arthroscopic elbow surgery) was set to make what could be his last rehab start before being reinstated from the IL, although Friedman said the team was still talking through the next steps.

Two-way star Shohei Ohtani’s timeline back to the mound is the biggest unknown, but Friedman insisted that his lingering knee injury didn’t change the Dodgers’ evaluation of its rotation heading into the deadline.

“I don’t think it puts it in an acute need at all,” Friedman said. “We’re confident he’s going to come back. Again, if there was something structural, then we would be much more concerned with that. But there’s not. And the fact that it does keep improving suggests that we’re on the right path and feel very confident that he will be back.

“And then that’s also where it gets to the depth that we have and the talented arms that have stepped up with some of our injuries, that we feel like deserved an opportunity to keep going. So it just doesn’t fall into acute. That being said, we’re always open-minded to different things.”

Friedman also offered some insight on Ohtani’s right biceps injury, which he first publicly acknowledged on July 3 and that he said Tuesday night was not 100%. Ohtani hasn’t pitched in a game since that July 3 start, when the biceps issue flared in his last at-bat.

“If it weren’t for the knee, he would be pitching right now, he would be making his regular turn [in the rotation],” Friedman said. “We kept the arm going. Does he feel 100% in his arm? No. But neither does any pitcher in late July. But this is around the knee and making sure that we can get it to a place where there’s just no compensation. So exactly when that is, I’m not sure. But I feel confident that relatively soon, he’s going to start getting out and start ramping up for catch play and bullpens and getting him back.”

Ohtani’s timeline, however, hasn’t progressed the way the Dodgers initially expected since receiving an Orthovisc injection to lubricate his knee at the beginning of the All-Star break. They’d hoped he’d return to the rotation in its first turn out of the break. Instead, he threw a bullpen in Philadelphia last week, and then his throwing program stalled.

It’s also unclear what version of Ohtani the Dodgers will get when he returns to the mound.

“There’s no question it got significantly better,” Ohtani said in Japanese of the effects of the injection. “But after talking with the doctors, I don’t think it’s realistic to expect the pain to be zero. That may end up being something that has to wait until the offseason. In the meantime, I’ll keep working through my rehab program and try to get it as close to zero [pain] as possible.”

While playing through the knee injury, and searching for a mechanical adjustment to take some pressure off it, Ohtani’s execution has wavered. He had a 4.38 ERA in his last four starts, compared to 0.74 in his first 10.

“I think it speaks to the knee and the delivery and just the challenge of repeating it over and over and over again,” Friedman said, “and more speaks to why we are doing this and making sure that we get it calmed down and in a good spot so he can repeat. Then I’ll bet on him to execute.”

NEW YORK — Shohei Ohtani’s throwing program has stalled, with the Dodgers star canceling a bullpen session the team had tentatively scheduled for Saturday.

“Just doesn’t feel 100%,” manager Dave Roberts said of Ohtani’s left knee. “And because I think that the last ‘pen that he had, there was a little bit of regression. So we want to make sure that that doesn’t happen again.”

It was going to be Ohtani’s second bullpen since receiving an orthovisc injection in his knee on July 12. He threw a roughly 30-pitch side session on Wednesday.

It’s unclear when he’ll throw off the mound next. But Roberts said he’s still optimistic that Ohtani will return to the rotation sometime in August.

“It was obviously not ideal, him throwing his last bullpen and going backwards, essentially,” Roberts said. “So obviously that’s disappointing because you throw a bullpen to continue to build up. So that was disappointing. But as far as worry, concern, we don’t have any of that.”

Roberts described a “fluid” process, with plenty of input from Ohtani, as he and Dodgers continue to navigate the knee issue. Because only pitching seems to be aggravating the injury, Ohtani will continue to play at designated hitter.

“From his words, the hitting, the running, as he has done the last couple nights, doesn’t affect him,” Roberts said. “So I can only go by what he and the training staff are telling me. So, unless I hear otherwise, that hitting compromises his health, then I’m going to keep putting him in the lineup.”

The Dodgers had initially hoped the injection and time off leading up to the All-Star break would allow him to get past the discomfort in his knee and not have to worry about managing it for the rest of the season.

Though Ohtani feels better than he did before the break, according to Roberts, the team wasn’t envisioning this kind of start-and-stop buildup.

The schedule does the Dodgers some favors. The off day Monday allows them to get through this coming week without filling Ohtani’s spot in the rotation. But in order to keep all their starters on a six- to seven-day rotation, they’ll have to find a replacement — whether that be a bullpen day or another starter — by the first week of August.

Starting pitcher Blake Snell (arthroscopic elbow surgery) is on track to be close to a return from the injured list by then. In his second rehab start this month, he threw 2⅔ innings (49 pitches) for triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday.

He’ll be targeting four innings in his next start, according to Roberts. When asked if he’d need another rehab outing after that, Roberts said: “Let’s just get through that next one. Get through four innings and kind of read and react from there.”

Injury updates

Dodgers teammates Kiké Hernández, left, and Shohei Ohtani laugh after a win over the Philadelphia Phillies at Dodger Stadium on May 29.

(Ronaldo Bolanos / Los Angeles Times)

The Dodgers are set to welcome back utility player Kiké Hernández (strained left oblique) and closer Edwin Díaz (arthroscopic elbow surgery) from the injured list early in next week’s homestand.

Hernández is set to be activated Tuesday, as the Dodgers open a three-game series against the Seattle Mariners, Roberts said. And Díaz likely will return Wednesday, sliding back into the closer role that Tanner Scott has held in his absence.

Tyler Glasnow (back spasms) threw about 25 pitches in a one-inning live batting practice session Friday, Roberts said. He’s scheduled to throw to batters again next week.

PHILADELPHIA — Shohei Ohtani wrapped up long toss in the Citizens Bank Park outfield Wednesday afternoon, turned and headed for the two-story bullpen stairs.

Ohtani had initially been scheduled to take the mound for the Dodgers Wednesday against the Phillies. But, with the date of his next pitching start up in the air, his bullpen session still drew a lot of eyes.

Ohtani threw off a mound Wednesday for the first time since receiving an Orthovisc injection in his left knee to lubricate the joint. The side session of about 30 pitches, running through multiple pitch types, was similar to a normal between-starts bullpen, pitching coach Mark Prior said.

“It looked good,” Prior said. “Feels good. We’ll see where he’s at tomorrow.”

Asked if Ohtani said his knee was feeling 100%, Prior said they didn’t get into specifics.

“Just said, ‘How did you feel throwing?’ He said it felt great,” Prior said.

Ohtani, who was in the lineup Wednesday as the designated hitter, was not made available to comment before the game.

It’s still unclear when Ohtani will pick up pitching duties again. But manager Dave Roberts ruled out Ohtani starting on the mound this weekend against the Mets.

“It’s day by day with him,” Prior said. “We’re present today. He threw a bullpen, see where he comes in … Friday, since we’re off [Thursday]. We’ll make determinations after that.”

This bullpen session was a chance for Ohtani to test his knee, which before the injection seemed to be aggravated by pitching.

“It’s a big sign,” Roberts said. “Because the grass, the flat ground, all of that stuff is well and good, the arm is fine. So it’s more of getting down the slope, throwing over your front side. That’s kind of the big test. Usually the bullpens are right around 88 (mph), so we’ll see where he’s at.”

Ohtani has already been out long enough that the Dodgers will have to be mindful of his workload whenever he rejoins the rotation. His last start on the mound was July 3 against the Padres.

“I still think it hasn’t been so long that the equity that he’s built up with the pitch count is that much compromised,” Roberts said. “But with that, I can’t foresee him running out there and throwing 100 pitches his first outing.”

If he’s sidelined for too long, he could have to gradually build up with each start. But it’s hard to pinpoint where that delineation lies.

“I think the easy answer is to say every pitcher is different,” Roberts said.